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A DISCOURSE 



BY 



D. K. 'WINDER, 



1892. 



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Printed and Published by the Author, 
115 Baltimore Ave. West. Detroit, Mich. 



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Copyright, 1892, By D. K. Winder. 



INTRODUCTION. 

THERE exists in the minds of multitudes of 
people, believers and unbelievers, a great 
desire to know whether there are any natural 
proofs of the reality of a future existence. 

The present discourse has been prepared to meet 
this longing of the mind and heart; and presents 
positive proofs of a future life, which are natural 
and logical as well as scriptural; and of such a 
tangible character that they may be understood 
and enjoyed by all thoughtful persons, whether 
they have received a classical education or not. 

The distinctive features of the mode which we 
have adopted in obtaining these proofs, will be 
understood from the following Laconic statement. 

First, the self evident truth, that what the 
scriptures teach is only that which is learned from 
a correct interpretation of the meaning of the sacred 
writers. 

Secondly, a fact which is susceptible of demons- 
tration, that God himself interprets the meaning 



4 INTRODUCTION. 

of the scriptures to those who prayerfully seek a 
knowledge of the truth. He reveals natural truths 
to the natural mind through the laws and phenom- 
ena of material nature; and spiritual truths to the 
spirit or soul by the influence of his own Spirit, 
directly or by lessons found in tangible natural 
phenomena. 

In presenting the natural proofs of a future life 
we are between two fires. Infidels are prejudiced 
against the bible to such an extent, that they will 
not tolerate any proof that is found on its pages. 
And in the same way, there are christians who are 
prejudiced against nature as a teacher of Divine 
truth, to such an extent that they will not tolerate 
any proof of the future life that is found in its laws 
or in its phenomena; although they know that the 
laws of nature are the work of God, and that they 
are just as truthful and trustworthy as the teaching 
of the bible itself; and not only so, but perfectly 
adapted to the requirements of persons whose 
spiritual capacities have not been developed by 
personal fellowship with God, to such a degree that 
they may comprehend spiritual things in their own 
experience. 

This prejudice seems to originate in the incor- 
rect idea that spirit life is unnatural; that is, that 



INTRODUCTION. 5 

while it is a life actuating the body in company 
with the body's own life, it is retained on suffer- 
ance until it takes its departure at death. 

But the truth is, that the spirit and its life are 
parts of the organization of a human being — the 
parts which may continue and live after death, and 
forever in heavenly blessedness, if developed and 
pure. This happy issue of earthly existence may 
be enjoyed by us all, if we yield to the influences 
of the gospel of Jesus Christ; for the gospel is the 
"power of God unto salvation to every one that 
believeth." 

Christians should remember that this prejudice 
is dangerous. It is as dangerous now as it was 
in the days of the Saracenian wars. In A. D. 640, 
when Caliph Omar invaded and overthrew the 
city of Alexandria in Egypt, he found there that 
grand old library, containing more than six hundred 
thousand volumes — the only large library in the 
world at that time. When his generals asked him 
what they should do with it, he reasoned in the 
same way as some christian people do now concern- 
ing the bible. He said, "The Koran contains all 
truth. If there is truth in the books of the library, 
we don't need them — we have the Koran. If the 
library contains anything that is not in the Koran, 



6 INTRODUCTION. 

it is false." And he ordered the great library to be 
burned. 

This discourse is the result of careful investiga- 
tion, and a consciousness of having a special call 
to the work; that is, the work of presenting to 
the divided church, a more perfect view of the 
harmony between the teaching of the bible and the 
teaching of nature, and the positive character of 
natural and scriptural proofs of a future existence. 

With reference to the reality of a future life, we 
sincerely believe that those who study these evi- 
dences, and who are willing to accept as positive 
proof, arguments against which no real logical, 
scriptural or scientific objections can be urged, must 
be thoroughly convinced. 

The author of this discourse for many years has 
been a critical student of the natural sciences and of 
the bible, and the proofs which are presented give us 
a positive assurance of a future existence: and they 
have been carefully arranged, so that they may be 
useful to all persons who are inclined to doubt the 
ordinary evidences on which the belief in a future 
life is founded. 

Christians will find in them a natural means of 
strengthening their faith and increasing their hope 
and comfort. 



INTRODUCTION. 7 

And these views of the great question are 
offered to sceptics in order to remove difficulties 
which may have kept them from believing in a 
future existence, and from accepting Christ and the 
enjoyment of a hope of heaven. 

It is a source of pleasure to find that although 
this discourse contains so many things which are 
not in any of the commonly accepted views of the 
future life, there is nothing in the proofs or in the 
logical deductions that may be drawn from them 
that is opposed to evangelical and orthodox 
doctrines. 



8 DIFFERENT INTERPRETATIONS. 



n. 

IT is a fact which we cannot fail to notice, that 
christian people read the bible and ask the 
Lord to help them to understand it, and yet come 
to different conclusions as to what it teaches. And 
this is true concerning the resurrection of our 
bodies, the nature of our souls, and even concerning 
our eternal destiny. 

The fault is not in the bible, — neither in what has 
been written or in the way it has been written. 
But the trouble is caused by the modes of interpre- 
tation which we ourselves adopt, in order to deter- 
mine the meaning of the sacred writers. 

The general belief with reference to the future 
life is, that after death the human spirit survives 
and lives forever. But there are churches who 
declare that there is not one passage in the bible in 
which such doctrine can be found. They interpret 
the scriptures which relate to the subject, as 
meaning that at death our life is extinguished, and 
that our bodies shall sleep in unconsciousness until a 
day of judgment. 

Now it is very plain, that modes of interpreta- 



NATURE A TEACHER. 9 

tion which lead so many honest readers of the bible 
to different conclusions upon such great questions 
as these, must be erroneous; and if possible it is our 
duty to discover the errors and to correct them. 

A belief is quite common, that concerning the 
future life there is no other source of information 
than the bible. This is an unfortunate mistake. 
And moreover, it is at variance with the teaching 
of the bible itself; for the bible tells us, that these 
invisible things may be understood by referring 
them to the realm of nature for explanation. 
Rom. i. 20 Paul says, "The invisible things of him 
from the creation of the world are clearly seen, 
being understood by the things which are made." 
In other words, the laws and phenomena of etherial 
and material nature are the golden keys that unlock 
the meaning of the scriptures, and reveal the invisi- 
ble world that we mry enjoy a view of its reality 
and its glory. 

In the accomplishment of his purposes God always 
works by means that are adapted to the end. As 
he brings the light of day that we may work and 
the hush of night that we may rest, by means of a 
visible rising and setting sun, so the Holy Spirit 
reveals to us the meaning of the bible by reflecting 
upon it the light of nature. 



10 METHODS OF INTERPRETATION, 

An appeal to nature for the meaning of the 
sacred writers, will no doubt solve the problem of 
the true mode of interpretation.. 

There are four different methods for determining 
the meaning of the bible, that have been extensive- 
ly used. 

First, the explanations given by the Roman 
Catholic church, which is represented as being 
infallible. All Protestants reject this method. 

Secondly, interpreting by the aid of the Holy 
Spirit received in answer to prayer. It is true that 
the Holy Spirit leads those who are guided by him 
into truth; but in our experience, this mode of 
determining the meaning of the scriptures is not 
satisfactory. For example, the Friends or Quakers 
who claim to be specially led by the Holy Spirit, 
say that the New Testament does not require the 
use of water in the administration of the ordinance 
of baptism. And the church of Plymouth Brethren 
who also claim to be specially guided by the Holy 
Spirit in their interpretation of the bible, say that 
water is required. This state of things in the 
belief of entire churches, leaves us to look for an 
authorized way of determining the meaning of the 
scriptures, further than the assertions of good men 
and women that they are guided by the Holy Spirit. 



METHODS OF INTERPRETATION. 11 

Thirdly, the plan of collecting all that the bible 
says on any given subject, and from a review of 
the passages endeavoring to determine the meaning 
of the text under consideration. This plan fails 
in the investigation of the question of our future 
existence. There are churches who pursue this 
course and believe that immediately after death our 
souls will be present with the Lord in heaven; and 
there are churches who declare that there is not 
one passage in the bible that teaches such doctrine. 
And we notice that the sermons of preachers who 
entertain these opposite views, consist almost entire- 
ly of scripture statements relating to the subject. 
o Fourthly, the plan of endeavoring to force the 
minds of those who humbly love and follow the 
Lord to assent to every word in King James' excel- 
lent translation of the bible, or in some other 
translation which the reader thinks is more authori- 
tative — coercing the mind to acknowledge the truth 
of statements that are contrary to known facts, 
because improperly rendered or introduced from the 
ancient manuscripts without sufficient reason; and 
justifying the unintellectual proceedure by the 
thought that perhaps some other part of the bible 
might remove the difficulties. 

Those who adopt this thoughtless mode of 



12 METHODS OF INTERPRETATION. 

reading the precious word of God are loud in their 
denunciation of scholarship, learning and logic when 
applied to remove human errors from the bible. 
And they tell us, that if we use reason to eliminate 
from the scriptures errors which were put there by 
human authority and which by the same authority 
should be removed, we "transfer our faith from 
God to fallible mortals, " Strange reasoning ! 
For if we are to use other parts of the scriptures to 
remove the difficulties from a passage which we 
may have under consideration, we must use our 
reason and learning; and yet they are denounced 
when used as aids to the meaning of the bible. 

While it is true that the word of God does not 
need any aid, it is also true that we who study it 
do need aid. This is clearly seen from the doctrines 
of opposite character which are found in the bible, 
and which have been made the foundation of 
christian churches and denominations. 

Such denunciation of the use of our mental facul- 
ties, if carried outside of the bible would seek to 
destroy our schools and institutions of learning, and 
throw us back into the conditions which prevailed 
during the dark ages, and put out the intellectual 
and spiritual lights of our nature which assure us 
that we were created in the image of God. 



METHODS OF INTERPRETATION. 13 

When we accept the aid which is offered by the 
apostle Paul, fresh light breaks forth from the 
word of God, and we have an interpretation the 
correctness of which is guaranteed by the facts of 
both the material and spiritual realms of nature 
and by the sanction of the bible itself. And the 
results which follow the adoption of the apostolic 
rule of interpretation are very desirable. 

In this way we are able to secure positive proofs 
of our future life, — proofs that are sure and satis- 
factory, and which give us a victory in every 
combat with doubt and scepticism. And moreover, 
it enables you to obey the apostolic command 
1 Pet. iii. 15, which tells you to "Be ready always 
to give an answer to every man that asketh you, 
a reason for the hope that is in you;" that is, a 
reason which will be satisfactory to others as well 
as to yourself. 

There are many christians who leave this for 
their preacher to attend to. But you will notice 
that the apostle exhorts you yourself to be ready to 
give a reason for your hope. 

By pursuing this course in our study of the 
bible we meet with some things that differ from 
the views which we have entertained. But we 
should not on that account turn aside from the 



14 AIJD TO INTERPBETATION. 

avenues of research which lead to such desirable 
vistas of the future. 

Concerning these questions every one does not 
require the same kind of proof. There are persons 
who require no other evidence than a bible promise 
and their own personal consciousness, to fully satis- 
fy them of the reality of spiritual existence and of 
a future resurrection. But all do not have the 
spiritual experience on which to build their faith; 
and in the absence of this consciousness, such 
persons can be convinced of the reality of a future 
life only by the facts of nature, by correct reasoning 
and a natural interpretation of the scriptures. 

To help those who may be dissatisfied with the 
ordinary way of determining the meaning of the 
bible, we humbly offer the following suggestions. 

First, when a passage of scripture is so plain 
that but one reasonable interpretation is possible, 
always accept it — it is God's word. But when 
different interpretations are admissible, choose 
that which agrees with the established natural 
sciences— they are founded upon God's natural 
laws. 

Secondly, in your efforts to interpret the bible, 
pay less attention to words, and more attention 
to the things which are spoken of by the sacred 



MIRACLES. 15 

writers; and you will find that when read in this 
way the events described in the bible will appear 
to you in plain language which is easily understood. 

By reading the scriptures in this natural way, we 
must have a correct interpretation, because nature 
and the bible are works and words of the same 
divine author, and therefore, there can be no contra- 
diction in their teaching. Even the wonders and 
miracles of the bible will be found to be in perfect 
accordance with the laws of the universe; and the 
natural character of much that once seemed to you 
to be unnatural will be revealed. 

And on the other hand, we should remember that 
it is quite as unsafe to attempt to study the natural 
laws of the universe in their relation to spiritual 
questions unaided; and that in order rightly to 
understand the voice of God in nature, we ought to 
enter her grand temples with the bible in our hands 
and the love of that which is spiritual in our hearts. 

Do not for a moment think that the natural 
mode of interpreting the bible will detract from 
the grandeur of the miracles which are recorded 
in it; for you will find that they will appear 
grander and more convincing because of their 
reasonableness and adaptation to the purposes for 
which they were wrought. 



16 THE SUPPLY OF WATER FBOM A BOOK. 



IIL 

AS an example of a natural view of the record 
of a miracle, let us notice the wonderful 
account of the supply of water which was provided 
for the Israelites after they crossed the sea at the 
time of their exodus from Egypt. 

The common view of the transaction is, that 
there was on the ground a large bowlder or granite 
rock. And that when Moses struck it with his 
staff, water flowed from a hole in the side of 
the rock, and supplied nearly a million of people* 
This is very unnatural and hard to believe. 

But the description of the miracle as recorded 
in the bible, when correctly interpreted appears to 
us as an occurrence which was in perfect conform- 
ity with natural laws. 

The rock was a cliff or ledge of stratified rocks 
which travelers find in that locality now. The 
Lord, by means of volcanic forces or by an earth- 
quake shook up the rocks that Moses smote with 
his rod, and the waters which were confined there 
gushed forth without obstruction, in quantity suf- 
ficient not only to meet the requirements of the 



JONAH AND THE WHALE. 17 

camp of the Israelites, but also to form a brook 
which flowed along the way of their journey. And 
the act of Moses was conspicuous, in order that it 
might be a sign that by divine authority he occu- 
pied his position as leader of the people. 

As thus interpreted, the transaction is not only 
reasonable and convincing, but it includes a grand 
miracle of God's power and goodness, which is seen 
not only in the bringing together at the same mo- 
ment the volcanic activity and the act of Moses, 
but also in the deliverance of the people from their 
distress. 

As another example of a natural view of the rec- 
ord of a miracle, let us notice a wonderful but true 
story, about which there has been so much talk — 
the account of Jonah and his adventure with a 
whale. 

The vessel on which Jonah embarked encoun- 
tered a storm. The sailors, thinking that Jonah 
was the cause of their peril threw him overboard, 
and he fell into the mouth of a great whale which 
happened to be feeding near the vessel. It was not 
a sperm whale nor a fin-back, but the one known 
to science as the Balsena Mysticetus or right whale. 

This species of whale has a mouth about eight 
feet deep by nine feet wide, which is large enough 



18 JONAH MD THE WHALE. 

to hold half a dozen men the size of Jonah. The 
author of this discourse himself has been in a 
whale's mouth, and found room enough to stand 
erect, and space enough to walk about back of and 
within the hirsute whalebone plates that hang from 
the whale's upper jaw like a fairy curtain. 

A whale comes to the surface of the water as 
often as once in every hour to blow; that is, to ex- 
pel the impure air from its mouth and take in a sup 
ply of fresh air. The whale's throat is very small, 
which prevented it from swallowing Jonah. A whale 
feeds exclusively on small marine larva, and takes 
its meal by opening its mouth wide and running 
along the surface of the water : it then closes its 
mouth and forces out the water, but retains the 
food which is prevented from escaping by the row 
of whalebone in the front part of its mouth. The 
whale under consideration certainly had no desire 
to feed while Jonah was tormenting it; and he re- 
mained in the whale's mouth as in a living cave, 
punishing the whale as much as the whale punished 
him; and at the expiration of three days the whale 
east him out into the breakers, from which he was 
rescued perhaps by fishermen who carried on a trade 
with the far off city of Nineveh. We would natu- 
rally suppose that Jonah told them the story of his 



JONAH AND THE WHALE. 19 

peril, and that he went on to Nineveh and warned 
the people of impending danger, telling the story 
of his marvelous deliverance from death as a proof 
of his divine mission. And when he was arrested, 
his friends the fishermen testified to the truth of 
his statements; and this resulted in his release, and 
finally in the repentance of the people and salva- 
tion of the city of Nineveh. 

Such is a natural view of the story as it is record- 
ed in the bible. And in the record thus interpreted, 
we find a really grand miracle of God's power and 
goodness, not only in the deliverance of Jonah from 
his peril, but in the bringing together at the proper 
times and places everything necessary for the con- 
version of the wicked city. 

To the objector we would say, that the correct- 
ness of this interpretation is assured by the fact 
that Christ himself endorses the principal facts in 
the account of Jonah and the whale in language 
that fully corroborates the view we have given. 
Matt. xii. 40 he says "For as Jonah was three days 
and three nights in the whale's belly; so shall the 
Son of man be three days and three nights in the 
heart of the earth." Now it is very plain, that as 
the earth has no heart, the word must be under- 
stood as meaning the center of the earth; and as 



20 JONAH AND THE WHALE. 

Jesus was not buried in the fiery ocean that consti- 
tutes the center of the globe, but in the tomb of 
Joseph on the earth's surface, we must understand 
the allusion to the central part of the whale in the 
same sense; that is, as locations that just as effectu- 
ally conceal from human sight as a burial at the 
center of the earth. Thus Jesus teaches us that 
Jonah was not imprisoned in the central digestive 
part of the whale's body, but in a part that corre- 
sponds to the location of his own tomb in the rocks 
on the surface of the earth; that is, that Jonah was 
three days and three nights in the whale's mouth. 
And moreover, the original word which has been 
translated so as to imply the abdominal viscera of 
the whale, very often means a "cavity," without 
reference to its peculiar character. 

And furthermore, Mr. Wilson the oriental trav- 
eler, during one of his voyages across the Mediter- 
ranean sea, saw a whale more than sixty feet long; 
which proves that whales of this species although 
they do not belong in the Mediterranean, sometimes 
appear there as transient visitors. 

Traveling seems to be a habit of all the Cetacea 
or whale family. A few years ago, a whale left 
the ocean and went up the St. Lawrence river as 
far as Montreal, where it was harpooned and cap- 



THE DELUGE. 21 

tured and placed in the museum; and ever since 
it has been exhibited as a curiosity, on account of 
its apparently unnatural venture up the river. 

As another example of a natural view of the rec- 
ord of a miracle, let us notice the wonderful ac- 
count of the flood which occurred in the days of 
Noah. 

An account of this deluge is found not only in 
the bible and cuneiform records of the hieroglyphic 
age, but also in the literature of the oldest nations 
which now exist on the globe. As usually under- 
stood, it has always been a stone of stumbling to 
the sceptic. But when it is interpreted in the light 
of natural facts, it is a perfectly reasonable story, 
the miraculous nature of which exhibits divine 
grandeur. 

There are several ways in which God could have 
brought the flood upon the earth by natural means. 
The following is the way indicated by the scriptures. 

Naturally viewed, the wickedness of mankind 
and the penalties connected with it alarmed Noah, 
and in obedience to God's command he built the 
ark, into which he put his family and living crea- 
tures of every species which were brought to him 
by the persons sent out to search for them. Then 
by a mighty convulsion of the earth, an old conti- 



22 THE DELUGE. 

nent called Atlantis or another one as large, sank 
beneath the waves; and at the same time the bot- 
tom of an old sea which is now part of the desert of 
Sahara was raised, and its waters flowed over all that 
inhabited part of the world. Gen. vii. 11 we are 
told that "The same day were all the fountains of 
the great deep broken up." Hills and valleys were 
covered for many days, during which rain and fog 
prevailed. In the confusion, high mountains were 
inaccessible by perishing humanity; but the dove 
that was sent out by Noah visited them, and seeking 
food it returned to the ark, carrying with it a leaf 
plucked from an olive tree. After a few weeks, 
the equilibrium of the earth's subsidence in one place 
and upheaval in another was complete; and the 
waters having fallen to their level, the lands were 
habitable again. In the misty atmosphere a rain- 
bow was continually visible during the day, and 
added to Noah's fear that another flood would fol- 
low. But when the Lord explained the natural 
cause of the rainbow, it became to him a token of 
the world's safety; and taking courage, he released 
all the living creatures from their confinement and 
worshipped God. 

In the record thus naturally interpreted, we find 
a grand miracle, not only in the bringing together 



NATUBAL INTERPRETATION SCRIPTURAL. 23 

at the proper times and places everything neces- 
sary for the preservation of Noah and his family, 
but also in the removal of a vicious race of mankind, 
of whom Gen. vi. 5 it is said that "Every imagi- 
nation of the thoughts of his heart was only evil 
continually" — a race, the continuance of which 
would have been a curse to the earth during the en- 
tire present cycle of its existence. 

By interpreting in this way, we do not substitute 
our own ideas for the bible record, nor express a 
doubt as to the truth of the facts which are actual- 
ly stated in the bible account; but we supply what 
was intentionally omitted by the sacred writers as 
being within reach of all thoughtful readers. 

That this is God's plan is manifest in all of the 
historical portions of the sacred writings; and we 
may trust the inspired words of Solomon, when he 
says that if we search for understanding "as for hid 
treasures" we shall "find the knowledge of God." 
And the apostle John expresses this same view of 
the historical parts of the bible, when John xxi. 25 
he says that "There are also many other things 
which Jesus did, the which if they should be written 
every one, I suppose that even the world itself could 
not contain the books that should be written" — 
speaking not of miracles but the teaching of Jesus. 



24 CHRISTIAN EXPERIENCE. 

A natural interpretation of the scriptures, and a 
spiritual understands g of that which is natural, 
meet the requirements of both the mind and the 
soul; and explain your experience when you are 
waiting until "the day dawn, and the daystar arise 
in your hearts;" while you wishfully look up to 
your Father in heaven and say — 

I woudd be nearer to thee, Lord, 

A pilgrim here below; 
My faith casts anchor in thy word, 

But oh that I could know. 

I would be nearer to thee, Lord, 

That all my doubts may go; 
Thy ways all nature's laws record, 

Thyself my soul would know. 

Thy call I hear — I come, dear Lord, 

Thy word I doubt no more; 
And now my faith the skies reward, 

With light unseen before. 

Yes, I am nearer to thee now, 

And take thy guiding hand; 
As will and doubt to reason bow, 

I view the promised land. 

But I am nearer to thee still, 

In Christ who lives for me; 
And yielding fully heart and will, 

My home in heaven T see. 



JNATUKAL 1MXKKPKETATION SCRIPTURAL 25 



IIL 

THE statements with reference to our future 
life which are found in the scriptures, should 
be interpreted in accordance with the established 
laws of the natural universe. By reading them in 
this natural way fresh light breaks forth from the 
bible, and we not only remove sceptical objections, 
but we secure a positive proof of the reality of our 
future existence, in the fact that the bible can be so 
interpreted correctly, and that it then agrees with 
nature in all that it says about it. 

David tells us that "the heavens declare the glory 
of God," and Paul says that the "invisible things" 
are "understood by the things that are made." 
He condemns those who change the natural use of 
things "into that which is against nature;" and he 
uses a lesson from the stars in teaching the future 
life, telling us that as one star differeth from an- 
other star in glory, "so also is the resurrection of 
the dead;" and he refers to mechanics and builders, 
when speaking of Christ as the foundation of the 
church, and says that if any man build upon this 
foundation precious stones or wood, that "fire shall 
try every man's work of what sort it is." 



26 THE FUTURE LIFE. 

And we have the great example of Christ him- 
self, who taught spiritual truths from natural laws 
and natural phenomena — from barren trees, from 
seeds, farmers, housekeepers, bakers, coins, laborers, 
weddings, dealers in pearls, the wind, a red sky and 
blooming flowers. 

The future life which is revealed in nature and 
which is promised in the bible, includes both a res- 
urrection of your body and the continued life of 
your spirit after death. Jesus makes this distinc- 
tion, in his discourse concerning our future exist- 
ence Luke xx. 35. He speaks of those which "Shall 
be accounted worthy of that world and the resur- 
rection from the dead." 

Some persons object to the doctrine of a resur- 
rection, because the materials of which our bodies 
are composed, when they return to the earth some- 
times enter into the constitution of other living 
bodies, and therefore cannot be restored to us in a 
universal resurrection of living beings. But the 
objection has no foundation, for the reason that 
nature does not promise a resurrection of that kind. 
It teaches that your recreated body will be compos- 
ed entirely of other matter, which in the resurrec- 
tion will be organized into your own individual 



HE RESURRECTION OF OUR BODIES. 27 

form that will possess as your present body does, ail 
of your own peculiarities of character. 

That our bodies will be raised again from the 
oead, is proved by the one great fact that the laws 
of nature are absolutely unchangeable. We are 
perfectly sure that whatever occurs under any pe- 
culiar conditions, must occur again whenever 
exactly the same conditions return. And there- 
fore, when the same conditions that brought into 
existence your present body and individuality shall 
return, you must be brought into existence again. 

And that such like conditions will return to ev- 
ery living being, is a fact which may be learned from 
a trustworthy source; that is, from the history of 
the earth itself. For the time will come, when the 
earth shall return to its original gaseous state and 
be recreated; and in the repeated existence of the 
world, all former living bodies including ourselves 
must appear again, by the operation of the unalter- 
able laws of nature. And the doctrine of the final 
annihilation of the wicked is a fallacy, for both na- 
ture and the bible teach us that the individual per- 
sonality of every human being shall be continuously 
repeated and so exist forever. 

Matter itself is eternal — it has always existed. 
It may be changed as to its form, and it may be 



28 THE RECREATION OF THE EARTH. 

variously combined, but it cannot be destroyed. 
The coal that we burn in our stoves and furnaces is 
not destroyed but changed by the process of com- 
bustion. It all still is in existence in the form of 
ashes, smoke and gases. 

In the beginning of the organization of the earth, 
its elements existed in an immense cloud of heated 
gases. This world of fiery clouds gradually cooled; 
a solid crust formed over the surface of the globe, 
and aqueous vapor filled the oceans. Then the 
world became peopled with living beings. The 
earth is still becoming colder, and the reduction of 
temperature will go on, until at last the elements 
shall reach a molecular condition that will result 
in a sudden disintegration and conflagration. By 
this process all of the elements will be returned to 
their original gaseous state. And then the jjrocess 
of a recreation of the world will begin, and as the 
recreation proceeds it will repeat the earth's entire 
present physical history; and all former living 
bodies including ourselves must appear again, by 
the operation of the unalterable laws which brought 
us into our present existence. 

The absolute repetition of the earth's history, 
does not necessarily include the voluntary acts of 
living beings. 



THE RECREATION OF OUR BODIES. 39 

Your body was brought into being through one of 
a definite number of atoms of living individuality 
which have always existed — each one reproducing in 
a cycle of the earth's existence a spirit and body — a 
body which will not require your birth again from 
parents of exactly the same appearance and charac- 
ter as those who were instrumental in bringing 
your body into the present world. For while it 
is true that they would be necessary for the repro- 
duction of many of the less important peculiarities 
of your present appearance and disposition, the 
same parents will not be essential to the recreation 
of your own individual body. This we learn from 
nature. We know that a seed planted in one field 
or in another field produces the very same individ- 
ual plant, although its appearance will show the in- 
tiuence of the peculiar soil in which it grows. 

The fact that we cannot see an individuality 
when it is not clothed with its material body, 
is no argument against its existence, because 
of the limitation of our senses. We cannot see 
a molecule in any of the elements that enter 
into a chemical compound, and yet we know that 
they exist, and we are able to tell the exact num- 
ber of each kind that are present in a chemical com- 
bination. 



30 THE TERRESTRIAL CONFLAGRATION. 

Your own individuality has always existed and 
will always exist; and like the individuality hid in 
a seed, eaa be seen only when clothed with a mate- 
rial growth, and when its material organization is 
destroyed disappears from our view, not to appear 
again until the future recreation of the world. 

This is the true theory of the earth's history; and 
yet the cycles of its repeated existence are much 
shorter, because the surface of the earth reaches a 
final condition of molecular disintegration before 
the interior, owing to the heat still retained at the 
center. Then, in case of a concussion from the fall 
of a meteorite, the surface elements to a depth of a 
few miles only will explode and burn, and return to 
their original gaseous state; and recreation will pro- 
ceed around and upon the remaining solid part of 
the globe. And so all these great cosmical changes 
will occur without displacing the matter of which 
the earth is composed, and without interfering with 
the position or the movements of the sun and plan- 
ets in the solar system. 

Even in the present state of our knowledge of 
chemistry, there are many terrestrial substances 
which can be brought into such a molecular condi- 
tion that upon a slight disturbance they suddenly 
change to a gaseous state. Dynamite, gun cotton, 



THE TERRESTRIAL CONFLAGRATION. 31 

fulminating silver, and sulphur and chlorate of pot- 
ash are examples of this peculiar chemical con- 
dition — a condition in which a slight concussion 
will cause them to explode and change from a solid 
to a gaseous form. 

And we should also remember that it is possible 
for the surface of the earth to be greatly changed 
in the very near future, by a similar disintegration 
of the elements in the earth's satellite. There can 
be no reasonable doubt with reference to the fact 
that at the present time, the moon, from its aged 
condition is in a molecular state approximating that 
which will bring about its own final catastrophe 
and return to a gaseous beginning for its own re- 
creation. And from its nearness to us, the earth 
certainly will be involved in the moon's fiery 
transition. 

With reference to all these things the scriptures 
agree with nature. 1 Pet. iii. 10 we are told that 
"The heavens shall pass away with a great noise, 
and the elements shall melt with fervent heat," and 
that we according to his promise look for new heav- 
ens and a new earth." And Eccl. i. 9 we read, 
"The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; 
and that which is done is that which shall be done: 
and there is no new thing under the sun." And 



32 THE RECREATION OF OUR BODIES. 

concerning the recreation of our natural bodies, 
Acts xxiv. 15 the apostle Paul says that "There 
shall be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just 
and the unjust." And Rev. xx. 5 the language of 
the apostle John agrees with the teaching of nature, 
as to the fact that the resurrection of the bodies of 
the dead will occur at the expiration of a thousand 
years after the close of the first resurrection, which 
is the present resurrection of the spirits of God's 
people, one by one as they exchange their earth-life 
for life in heaven. 

The recreating process which shall result in the 
resurrection of earthly bodies will begin at this 
time — the time when Jesus will come again "In the 
clouds of heaven with power and great glory;" 
when "The earth also and the works that are there- 
in shall be burned up." And 2 Pet. iii. 8 we are 
told that "One day is with the Lord as a thousand 
years and a thousand years as one day;" which jus» 
tifies our interpretation of the quotation from the 
twentieth chapter of Revelation, as referring to the 
long period of time occupied in the recreation of 
the world, and the consecutive recreation of the 
bodies of all mankind. 

^The belief is quite common, that in the resurrec- 
tion our bodies will actually be changed from flesh 



THE LAKE OF FIRE. 33 

into spirit. This is like the doctrine of the ancient 
alchemists, who thought that they could change 
brass into gold. But this ecclesiastical alchemy 
cannot be found in the teaching of nature or in the 
bible. 

Nature does not change one of her elements into 
another. And 1 Cor. xv. 50 Paul tells us that 
"Flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of 
God." And John iii. 3 Jesus says you "Must be 
born again;" that is, you must be born out of 
your body, and enter upon an independent exist- 
ence of your spirit, before you can "see the king- 
dom of God." 

When the apostle Paul tells us that we "shall be 
changed," he means that the mode of our lives shall 
be changed from living in an earthly body, to liv- 
ing an independent spirit life in heaven. At the 
death of your body you will "put on immortality" 
by living its characteristic life, just as we now "put 
on Christ" by living like Christ, or in the likeness 
of his character. 

The "lake of fire" spoken of in the twentieth 
chapter of Revelation, evidently is the burning 
world. And there will be plenty of "brimstone" 
in that great terrestrial fire. 

Some persons may object to this interpretation 



34 THE DEATH OF OUR BODIES. 

because the language of Jesus Mark ix. 44 repre- 
sents this lake as being a place where the "worm 
dieth not, and the fire is not quenched." But a 
more careful consideration shows that these state- 
ments are in perfect harmony with the natural 
interpretation which we have given. The "worm" 
spoken of is the emblem of death and the grave; 
both of w r hich will continue to the end, and sure- 
ly will be found also in the recreated earth. And 
the statement that the "fire is not quenched," refers 
to the overwhelming character of the conflagration, 
and to the fact that the fire at the center of the 
earth is never extinguished. Matt. xxv. 41 we read 
of the lake of fire "Prepared for the devil and his 
angels;" which means that everything sinful and 
all those who continue to be servants of sin must 

end there. 

In the present life we all suffer much in conse- 
quence of our own sins, and on account of the sins 
of others. But the death of our bodies is not a re- 
sult of sin — it is natural. All living creatures die — 
christians, atheists, princes, paupers, elephants, ani- 
malcules, trees and diminutive mosses. Natural 
death occurs according to natural laws. While the 
supplies that are appropriated by your system are 
sufficient life continues; and when a waste of tis- 



THE CONSEQUENCES OF SIN. 35 

sues is greater than the reparation, death follows. 
The consequence of sin is spiritual death — not 
natural death. This we learn from both nature and 
the scriptures. In the account of the evils that our 
first parents suffered in consequence of their sins, 
natural death is not mentioned — expulsion from 
paradise, sorrow and hard work are the results spo- 
ken of. 

When God gave instructions to Adam and Eve 
concerning the forbidden fruit, and said to them 
Gen. iii. 3 "Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye 
touch it lest ye die," he meant spiritual death. Af- 
ter their disobedience, we are are told Gen. iii. 24 
that by means of "Cherubim and a flaming sword," 
God prevented their approach to the tree of life, 
lest they should eat and live forever. 

No greater calamity could possibly befall a hu- 
man being, than eternal spiritual existence defiled 
by sin and unfitted for heaven; and no greater 
blessing could be bestowed, than eternal life when 
the soul is pure and enjoys communion with GocL 

Natural death is the worst enemy impure human 
beings could have, because it robs them of .their 
earthly life — the only life they can live; but to the 
godly soul it is a deliverer that gives a victorious 



36 RECREATION OF ANIMALS. 

entrance to an endless life of spiritual happiness 
and usefulness in heaven. 

1 Cor. xv. 21 when Paul says "For since by man 
(Adam) came death, by man (Christ) came also 
the resurrection of the dead," he means the resur- 
rection of lost souls to life in heaven — the work 
that Jesus came into the world to accomplish. 

Paul informs us that the spirit of Jesus, which 
after his resurrection appeared forty days on earth, 
was "Christ the first fruits." And the spirits spo- 
ken of by the apostle, when he says "Afterward 
they that are Christ's at his coming," are the spirits 
he is daily taking home to be with him where he is; 
and includes the spirits of all his people who will 
die until the final earthly catastrophe, at the time 
of his coming in power. Then the recreation of 
the earth will begin, and during its progress the 
successive resurrection or recreation of the bodies 
of mankind will occur. 

The resurrection of all the animal creation in 
common with man, is taught by the bible as well as 
by nature. This is clear from the language of Paul 
Rom. viii. 19 where we are told that "The earnest 
expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifes- 
tation of the sons of God;" that is, for a resurrec- 
tion of their bodies that will be similar in every 



NATURAL DANGER. 37 

respect to the natural resurrection which mankind 
shall experience. And in the 22nd verse he tells us 
that "The whole creation groaneth and travaileth 
in pain together, . . . waiting for the redemp- 
tion of our body." 

We have often heard glowing descriptions of the 
goodness of nature, — of the richness of her bless- 
ings in rain and sun shine, and in fruits and flowers; 
but we should also learn a lesson from the neglect- 
ed theme of natural danger and punishment — 
things that preachers seldom speak about. 

In order that we may understand these things, 
we should remember that the world of living beings 
to a certain extent is controlled by human minds. 
That which we should earnestly seek to control, is 
a natural tendency to degenerate, which is seen 
in all improved varieties of living creatures. This 
is known to science as "reverting to type;" that is, 
improved varieties of living beings left to them- 
selves, lose the improvement and revert to their for- 
mer condition. Turkeys are an example of a tend- 
ency to such reversion. They are naturally wild 
and often domesticated; but afterward if they are 
not carefully attended to, by an innate tendency 
they revert to their natural condition and prefer 
the tops of trees to the comforts of a barn yard. 



38 NATURAL DANGER. 

It is by the exercise of the mind that its power 
is developed, just as the arm of the blacksmith is 
strengthened by use. Without work there couid be 
no increase of our physical strength; and without 
the effort which is necessary to the attainment of a 
knowledge of truth, there could be no mental de- 
velopment. And for this reason the bible was so 
written as to require the diligent use of our mental 
faculties and our learning, in order to understand 
the meaning of the sacred writers. 

And it is by the development of mind, that we 
are enabled to obey the command given to our first 
parents, who were told to subdue the world and 
"have dominion over it." 

There is a prevailing idea that thorns and thistles 
were not included in the six days work of creation, 
and that they were brought into existence after 
Adam and Eve sinned against God, and for the 
purpose of punishing mankind for wickedness. 

But it is evident that thorns and thistles were 
made in the beginning when the earth brought 
forth every plant that grew. And Gen. i. 31 we 
read, that upon reviewing his work, "God saw ev- 
ery thing that he had made, and, behold it was very 
good" — not part good and part bad but all "very 
good." 



NATURAL. DANGER. 39 

Some one may inquire, "are thorns and thistles 
good ? We reply, that depends upon who it is that 
answers the question. The thistle itself, from its 
natural love of life would say yes; and the birds 
that feed upon thistle seeds would say yes they are 
good. The needles on the thistle leaves are good 
because they protect the plant. Thorns are good — 
they defend the tree from destructive intruders; 
and the poisonous fangs of rattlesnakes are good as 
a means of defense against their enemies. 

The evil which was brought upon mankind was 
not the creation of thorns and thistles, but the re- 
moval of our first parents from the beautiful garden 
where it would have been very easy to control 
them — removal to the unprotected fields of the 
world where thistles grow in profusion, and where 
it requires hard work to destroy them. 

It is true that thistles torment the agriculturalist^ 
and it is also true that our bodies and our minds 
are developed by the exercise of our ingenuity and 
by work. The extermination of thistles requires 
hard work; and the lazier we are the more trouble 
we have with weeds. Thistle seeds are food for 
the beautiful thistle birds. The birds sing, and 
with their bright plumage make the world cheerful; 
boys shoot the birds and let the thistles grow; 



40 EACH. INDIVIDUALITY A SPIRITUAL ELEMENT. 

and then wonder why God makes so many thistles. 

We know that our troubles may be increased 
and the death of our bodies may be hastened, by a 
neglect of our duties and by disobedience to the 
laws of our being But whether we die in infancy 
or at the age of threescore years and ten, our bodies 
will be born again in the recreated world. 

By our recreation in the new earth, each one of 
us will introduce into the universe an additional 
spirit — a spirit which will be another member of 
the family of out own personal individuality. This 
fact explains the eternal existence of your personal 
individuality aDd the doctrine of the immortality of 
species which has long been accepted. 

And this also shows the fallacy of the doctrine 
that the souls of the wicked will finally be annihila- 
ted. For nature and the bible teach us that al- 
though both the body and the soul may die, the 
personal individuality of every human being, body 
and spirit shall continuously reappear in each suc- 
cessive recreation of the world, and so exist forever. 

Each spiritual individuality is an atom or ele- 
ment of living existence; that is, they are the ele- 
ments which organize spiritual bodies; just as each 
peculiar material substance is an element in the con- 
stitution of the material universe. 



A SUKPK1SE AWAITING US. 41 

This is something which perhaps you have not 
found before in any of your researches. You will 
notice that during these explorations in the domain 
of nature, we have found evidence which proves 
that in heaven you will meet with other spirits each 
one of whom will be a fac-simile of yourself — pos- 
sessing your own peculiarities, capacities and 
tastes. In heaven you will be very happy in the 
companionship of souls who possess so many of the 
characteristic qualities peculiar to your own indi- 
viduality, and who were born into the world of 
spirits — each one from a recreation of the earth in 
past ages. 

And there are many other surprising revelations 
awaiting us in the future spirit life, although we 
may not be able to discover them now. 1 Cor. ii. 9 
we are told that "Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, 
neither have entered into the heart of man the 
things which God hath prepared for them that love 
him." 

This passage of scripture is frequently quoted, 
but all do not understand its meaning. The word 
"it" which is generally added is not in the verse. 
We are not taught that these things are entirely 
beyond our comprehension, but that they are be- 
yond the comprehension of the natural mind. The 



42 EVIDENCES OF THE RECREATION. 

words "neither have" mean that neither the eye or 
the ear can convey to our understanding an idea of 
our mode of living in the future life — realities that 
are spiritually discerned; that is, they may be dis- 
cerned by the senses of your spirit, and not by your 
natural senses. 

There is positive proof that the world will be re- 
created; and the evidences are of such a character 
that we can depend upon them. 

The statements we have made concerning the 
history of the earth's existence and destiny, are 
consistent with the teaching of all text books on 
the science of astronomy which are used in our 
schools and colleges. And we find a full confirma- 
tion of these views in the well known present cold 
and desolate condition of the moon; and also in the 
established laws of chemistry. 

Chemical laws are founded upon observations of 
phenomena resulting from various conditions under 
which elements are placed. But in the sun and in 
other heavenly bodies, there are conditions which 
we have never been able to produce in our experi- 
ments, and hence there are laws which we have yet 
to learn. The recognized chemical law is correct, 
that when oxygen and hydrogen gases are mixed 
and a lighted match applied, an explosion must 



TBMPOBABY STARS. 43 

follow from the sudden union of the gases and the 
formation of water. But oxygen and hydrogen 
are found in an uncombined incandescent or in- 
tensely heated state in the fiery photosphere of the 
sun; which shows the possibility of a great change 
of molecular character, by conditions that are at 
present unknown to us. 

The fact that the earth is gradually approaching 
a cold condition, just the opposite of that which we 
find increases the permanence of molecular combi- 
nations of the elements in the sun, is proof that 
the theory of the earth's final disintegration by the 
influence of condensation and cold is correct. 

But a still more complete confirmation of the 
correctness of this view of the earth's history and 
destiny is found in the fact that more than thirty 
temporary stars have appeared in the heavens at 
different times — blazing out in splendor a few 
weeks, and then gradually fading from sight. The 
new star which recently appeared in the constella- 
tion Auriga was one of these temporary stars; and 
it too, after exhibiting a number of changes in its 
appearance, rapidly faded away. And in every case 
when these temporary stars have been examined by 
the spectroscope, it revealed the wonderful fact 
that they were burning worlds. 



4-4 RESURRECTION OF OUR BODIES. 

Thus we find in the unchangeable character of 
the laws that govern nature, in the fact that the 
earth will be recreated, and in corresponding state- 
ments of the bible, positive proofs that a day will 
come when our bodies shall live again. 

The principal purpose of a recreation of the 
world evidently is to bring into existence multi- 
tudes of living spiritual human beings; and the doc- 
trine of evolution or a tendency which exists in na- 
ture to an elevation of character in the various 
types of living beings, also teaches that in the res- 
urrection life we shall experience an increase of our 
mental powers and in the capacities of our senses, 
which will fit us for greater enjoyment and higher 
spheres of usefulness, and thus leads us to see the 
same reason for a recreation of the world. 

And we notice that many of the facts and argu- 
ments which have been presented, are of such a 
character that the atheist as well as the christian 
may feel their force; for if it was true as atheists 
suppose, that they came into the world by chance; 
then, if blind chance made this world and brought 
them ^ into it, blind chance may make another 
world and bring them into that. 



THE EXISTENCE AND DESTINY OF THE SOUL. 45 



IV. 



TO know that our bodies shall live again in 
a coming resurrection is a source of encour- 
agement. But we all experience a deeper interest 
in that which relates to the life of our souls after 
the death of our bodies, and in the certainty of the 
proofs upon which our hope of heaven depends. 

We are glad to know that nature teaches the ex- 
istence of the soul, and reveals its destiny; and that 
we need not go far away to find evidence and in- 
struction. 

In the constitution of your own being, if you 
should go no further, you will find a positive and 
irresistible proof, not only of the existence of your 
soul, but also that it may live and enjoy a conscious 
and independent life in the world of spirits. 

Nature, however, does not teach the immortality 
of the soul as it is generally understood. We de 
not learn from nature that your soul must live for- 
ever, but we learn that it may live forever. Na-' 
ture teaches us that there is in your constitution 
your body that lives and exercises mental powers, 
and also a spiritual body that is a fac-simile of your 



46 YOUR NA URAL MIND NOT YOUR SPIRIT. 

material individuality, but of etherial character; 
that is, composed of atoms of ether: and that it 
is free from present adaptations to the necessities of 
earth life, and free from all the scars and marks 
which accidents and disease have made in your 
earthly body. 

The dividing lines that separate the different 
kingdoms of nature are never sharply defined. As 
in the lower orders of vegetable and animal life, 
there are species which in their habits and appear- 
ance are so much alike that it is difficult to deter- 
mine whether they are vegetables or animals, so it 
is with reference to the line that divides your men- 
tal from your spiritual faculties. It is not at all 
times clearly defined in the phenomena which they 
exhibit; and we should be careful lest we attribute 
to our mental faculties that which really appertains 
to our spiritual nature. We know that the re- 
lation which your body sustains to your spirit is 
very intimate — so intimate that being of a perva- 
ding etherial character, your spirit occupies the 
same space with your material body; and does so 
without violating the law of impenetrability. 

That your spirit has a very perfect organization, 
is not a visionary theory, but a fact that nature 
clearly reveals. Everywhere in the vegetable king- 



TOUB SI IB T AN ORGANIZED BODY. 47 

dom, and everywhere in the animal kingdom, life 
is found only in organized bodies. And the bodies 
correspond to the character of the life displayed. 
In some species the organization is so simple that it 
consists of a cell and vibrating cilia only. The 
more intellectual manifestations of life are always 
clothed with more highly organized bodies. 

It is certain that the organization of your spirit- 
ual body is more complex and perfect than that of 
your natural body, because your spiritual life mani- 
fests intelligence of a higher order than that of your 
natural mind. 

Nature furnishes no examples of a manifestation 
of intellectual life separate from organized bodies; 
and therefore, when we have proved the reality of 
the spirit's existence and its life, we have also prov- 
ed the existence of an organized spiritual body for 
every human soul. 

And this grand truth is clearly revealed also in 
the scriptures. 2 Cor. v. 2, 3 the apostle Paul says 
"We groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon 
with our house which is from heaven: if so be that 
being clothed we shall not be found naked ;'" that 
is, our individuality clothed in an organized spiritu- 
al body. 

With regard to the question of the origin or 



43 ETHER AND MATTER. 

birth of your soul, it is plain that it is an etherial 
incarnation; that is, an organized spirit dwelling in 
your earthly body. This must be so, because the 
spirit is an entity distinct from the body both in its 
life and in its organization. 

The entire domain of nature so far as our senses 
and instruments enable us to penetrate its depths, 
is found to consist of the two entities, matter 
and an all pervading ether; both of which may be 
identified by their peculiar properties and the phe- 
nomena that they exibit. And while it is true 
that ether associated with matter manifests the ac- 
tivities which we call light, electricity, mental pow- 
ers and other forces, its grander displays of pure 
intellectual power and everlasting vitality, are man- 
ifested in bodies which are organized from its own 
elements; that is, in our spiritual bodies. 

Just as certain motions of matter are recognized 
as sound, certain motions of the etherial substance 
are recognized as light. And just as organised 
combinations of the atoms of matter are recoin ^ed 
as bodies, so organized combinations of the atoms 
of ether are recognized as spirits; that is, etherial 
bodies. But as there is light in the heavens that 
can be seen only by preparing the eye by rest be- 
fore using the telescope; so there is spiritual light 



BIRTH OF THE SOUL. 49 

which undeveloped spiritual perception cannot dis- 
cern. 

Throughout all nature, we find that wherever 
there is a habitation suitable for any kind of living 
beings, atoms of living individuality which we call 
life find their way to it, and there organize bodies 
that are adapted to the conditions. The drops of 
dew, though they glitter but an hour in the morn- 
ing sun shine, all have their tiny inhabitants. And 
just so, our heavenly Father through the etherial 
realm of nature sends into every new born human 
earthly body an organizing spirit life, to form an 
indwelling spiritual body. 

Some persons refuse to believe in the existence of 
the human spirit, because under certain diseased 
conditions of the brain and mind, the spirit fails to 
exhibit a knowledge of the actions of the body. 
But the objection has no foundation, because if the 
spirit did so, it would be contrary to the analogies 
of nature. A logical student of nature does not 
expect to find the human mind familiar with the 
experience of the spirit, or the spirit to know to a 
great extent the transactions of the mind. 

, Magnetism, which is of etherial nature, passes 
through glass which is of material nature, without 
showing any recognition of the presence of the 



OV. ANALOGY. 

glass; but we do not therefore deny the existence 
and presence of the glass. 

During your earthly life, your spirit and your 
body are united in one person, but they are distinct 
entities. And this is not an unusual arrangement 
in the ways of nature. 

There are three distinct entities in a ray of sun- 
light. There is light, heat and actinism or chemi- 
cal power. Th© thermometer that measures heat, 
gives no indications of light in the ray; but we do 
not on that account deny the existence of the light. 
A collodion film which measures actinic power, does 
not indicate the presence of heat; but we do not for 
that reason deny the existence of heat. And as 
the human spirit and the sun-beam, much as they 
differ, are both organizations of the etherial element 
of nature, we should not expect the phenomena of 
spiritual existence to make any very tangible direct 
impressions upon the natural senses of the body. 

However, from the intimate relation Svhich exists 
between the body and the soul, we know that there 
must be in our experience reciprocal impressions re- 
sulting in consciousness of our own soul's existence. 
This, consciousness becomes perfectly tangible, 
whenever your mind continuously seeks to ascend to 
spiritual conceptions; for your spiritual body and 



THE HOLY SPIRIT. 51 

its mind are as real as your earthly body and 
mind; and therefore their existence must be tangi- 
ble to your natural senses. 

Thus you may be conscious of your own spiritual 
faculties of perception, and that they are independ- 
ent of the senses of your natural body. And from 
this consciousness you may derive a full assurance 
that they will remain with all their vitality, when 
your body dies and removes all that now interferes 
with the full enjoyment of your higher nature. 

Spirits are not earthly bodies, but they are entire- 
ly of etherial character. 

Our heavenly Father himself is "a Spirit:" and 
his etherial nature is so grand that it will be our 
pleasing study through all the ages of eternity- 
Psalms xxv. 14 we are told that "The secret of the 
Lord is with them that fear him." That is true: 
but while it is our happy privilege to enjoy fully 
the presence of his Spirit in our souls; with our 
natural minds we may behold only the "sea of 
glass" and the "sapphire pavement" that is around 
his throne. 

The terms "Holy Ghost" and "Holy Spirit," 
which are so often found in the bible, are names 
of God, and of the divine influence that proceeds 
from his presence; and they often mean capacities 



62 THK HOLY SP1BIT. 

which the Lord bestows upon his people. But all 
of the terms, "Holy Ghost," "the Comforter," "the 
Spirit" and "Holy Spirit," are more frequently used 
in another sense, which seems to have escaped the 
notice even of critical students of the bible ; that is, 
a spiritual being, either on earth or in heaven. 

In some passages, the meaning is the soul or 
spirit of a godly person. 1 Cor. iii. 16, 17 Paul 
says "The spirit of God (the soul) dwelleth in you:" 
and "If any man defile the temple, (the body) him 
(the soul) shall God destroy." This corresponds to 
the teaching Eccl. xii. 7, where we are told that the 
spirit shall return "Unto God who gave it." Your 
spirit is called the spirit of God because God 
gave it. 

And very often these terms mean a spiritual 
being or angel who is the companion of a godly 
person in the present life. Jesus uses the words 
"Spirit" and 'Comforter" in this sense John xiv. 16 
when he says the Father shall "Give you another 
Comforter, that he may abide with you," And 
again, "If I depart, I will send him unto you:" 
and he will be a true spirit companion, and will en- 
courage you and aid you in the development of 
the capacities of your spiritual nature. 

The correctness of this view is seen by reference 



THE HOLY SPIRIT. 53 

to language in the first chapter of Revelation. We 
are told that God gave a revelation to Jesus, who 
sent it to John by an angel; that is, by a spirit. 
In the second chapter we read that John sent it to 
the churches saying to them, "Hear what the Spirit 
saith unto the churches." The spirit here spoken 
of is generally understood to mean the third person 
in the Trinity; but it evidently alludes to the spirit 
or angel by whom Jesus sent the message to John. 
Heb. i. 7 Paul speaks of God and the messengers 
whom he sends to the earth, on this wise, "He mak- 
eth his angels spirits;" that is, God sends spiritual 
beings as messengers to his people. And Psalms 
xxxiv. 7 we are told that "The angel of the Lord 
encampeth round about them that fear him." 

This is evidently the teaching of the scriptures; 
and it is pleasing to find that none of these views 
are opposed to the generally received doctrine that 
God manifests himself to us in a threefold charac- 
ter as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. 

The doctrine of the independent existence of the 
human spirit is not only natural but it is scriptural. 
Eccl. xii. 7 we read "Then shall the dust return to 
the earth as it was; and the spirit unto God who 
gave it." And 1 Corinthians 15th chapter, the re- 
lation of your spirit to your body is clearly stated. 



54 THE JSTATUKAL BODY F1BST. 

In the 44th verse Paul tells us that "There is a nat- 
ural body and there is a spiritual body ;" and in the 
46th verse he says "Howbeit that is not first which 
is spiritual, but that which is natural, and afterward 
that which is spiritual." And John xi. 25 Jesus 
says "I am the resurrection and the life." In this 
language he refers to the resurrection of spirits, and 
not to the resurrection of our natural bodies. 

We often speak of the preciousness of souls. 
The preciousness is seen in the soul's capacity for 
the enjoyment of spiritual things, and in its capac- 
ity for everlasting life and usefulness in heaven. 

Concerning the destiny of the soul, there are 
three theories each of which has found many ad- 
vocates. The following are the principal ideas. 

1. That every human soul will live forever — 
the righteous in happiness and the wicked in misery. 
In this theory the purpose of endless torment and 
its consistency with divine wisdom and goodness 
are not explained. 

2. That the souls of the wicked, after death will 
gradually loose their guilty character, and be restor- 
ed to the everlasting life of the righteous. 

3. That our present life is our only opportunity 
for probation, and that an acceptance of Christ se- 
cures the blessedness of heaven, and a rejection of 



DESTINY OF THE SOUL. 55 

Christ leaves the soul to suffer endless torment in 
consequence of its sins. 

In each of these theories no doubt there is both 
truth and error. 

The bible and nature teach us that the soul lives 
through being nurtured by spiritual food — provi- 
sions which God supplies by his own communion 
with the soul, through the Holy Spirit perceived 
and felt in our experience, and through Christ who 
came to "seek and to save that which was lost;" 
that is, to save souls that are dead or separated 
from God. And he came to feed our souls with 
the bread of life. 

In this grand work the Father and Christ are 
one; and Christ and his people are one, for Paul 
tells us that we who in our poor way are working 
in the Lord's vineyard or feeding his sheep are "la- 
borers together with God." God is the great 
fountain and source of eternal life — Jesus is the 
"river of water of life" — the Holy Spirit is the 
channel through which God's blessings flow — his 
people are the little rivulets of divine grace. And 
these divine instrumentalities working together 
open up the way of life to all who enter that way 
in humility, faith and obedience. 

Nature teaches that the soul requires food and 



56 tfOUBISHMENT OF THE SOUL. 

care, in order that it may live and increase in spir- 
itual stature. 

As the new born earthly body looks to its parents 
for protection and nourishment, so the new born 
spirit looks to them for support. But alas! often 
the parents themselves have no spirituality and 
cannot support the new born soul. When there is 
parental spiritual care, the spirit is nurtured and 
grows; and for want of such care it perishes/ But 
nature teaches that in the changes which constantly 
are occurring nothing is destroyed; and therefore, 
the etherial elements of the disorganized spirit are 
not annihilated. A soul thus lost may be raised 
from the dead, according to natural law controlled 
by divine power which provides other means of sup- 
port — may be "born again," and restored to its 
earthly temple in the present life. 



YOUR SP1KIT A DISTINCT ENTITY. 67 



V. 



TO meet your doubting disposition, nature fur- 
nishes many evidences of your soul's existence, 
as an entity distinct from your body and natural 
mind. 

For proofs that these statements concerning the 
distinction between your body and your spirit are 
correct, we appeal not only to the scriptures but to 
the facts of physiology and psychology; all of 
which show that your body and your spirit are dis- 
tinct and independent entities in your present ex- 
istence. 

We know that the body is nourished by the food 
we use, and that the mind is fed by learning and 
thought. But your hungry spiritual nature cannot 
be fed and satisfied by mental achievements, though 
all the range of natural knowledge were offered. 
The requirement of your spirit is satisfied only by 
knowledge of divine realities — realities which like 
your spirit are spiritual, etherial, unfettered to 
earth and far above all the desires of the natural 
mind. And we know that these things have no 
power to excite our natural emotion; which is influ 



58 YOUB SPIRIT A DISTINCT ENTITY. 

enced by things of an earthly character. These 
distinct requirements of your nature reveal clearly 
the distinction of being — your natural body and its 
mind, and your spirit and its mind; and moreover, 
it clearly distinguishes mankind from lower orders 
of the animal kingdom. 

An active and developed mind makes its impress 
on the features; and thus intelligence becomes vis- 
ible in the countenance, and proves the existence of 
the mind, and of the physical organization that 
produces it. And thus spiritual activity imparts a 
character to the human countenance, which by per- 
sons of spiritual education and experience may be 
distinguished from that which is caused by the pas- 
sions and activities of the natural mind. Look 
over the photographs of the spiritual leaders of the 
religious world and see that this is true. Spiritual 
life is visible in the countenance; and the fact of 
this recognition is proof of the existence of the hu- 
man spirit and its mind, just as the recognition of 
a color is a proof of its presence, and of the exist- 
ence of the pigment that produces it; or the recog- 
nition of a musical sound proves that it comes 
from an organ or piano as the case may be. 

And we notice that this luminous or shining 
character of our spiritual nature, is frequently spo- 



YOUR SPIRIT A DISTINCT ENTITY. 69 

ken of in the bible. Moses was many days on the 
mountain in communion with God, and we are told 
that when he came down, the skin of his face was 
shining, and that he put a veil over his face so that 
the people could speak to him. Jesus was present 
with God, and with the spirits of Moses and Elijah 
on the mount of transfiguration; and when he came 
down his face was shining like the sun. All of 
God's people may have a similar experience; for 
when he was speaking of our future life Matt. xiii. 
43 Jesus said "Then shall the righteous shine forth 
like the sun in the kingdom of their Father." 

As the food upon which the spirit lives indicates 
that it is a distinct entity, so the spirit's aspira- 
tions and utterances distinguish it from the natural 
mind. 

Sometimes it is impossible to discover any indi- 
cations of a desire for that which is spiritual, heav- 
enly or divine, in persons who have enjoyed the 
privileges of culture, and who are naturally emo- 
tional — all efforts having failed to raise their desires 
up to divine things, and to the enjoyment of a life 
of spirituality. 

This fact is positive proof that the natural mind 
and the spirit are distinct entities; and that in all 
such cases the spirit is either dead or inactive. 



60 YOUR SPIRIT A DISTINCT ENTITY. 

The natural mind craves for the use of the body 
vegetables and meats, and for itself knowledge of 
natural things; but the spirit longs for that which 
is spiritual, etherial and divine. The natural mind 
wants gratification of the natural senses — beauty 
for the natural eye, melody for the ear, sweet per- 
fumes, and the pleasure of solving the problems of 
the natural universe. But the spirit soars far 
above all these into the realm of the spiritual; and 
its experience with that which is divine, imparts 
the most real, ecstatic and overwhelming impres- 
sions that are made upon our conscious organiza- 
tion. These facts reveal your spirit not only as a 
distinct entity, but also as the very center around 
which cluster all other elements of your being. 

You often realize that there is a combat going on 
between the wishes of your mind and the wishes of 
your spirit — a combat that clearly reveals the dis- 
tinguishing characters of both, and therefore cannot 
be attributed to the natural mind alone. 

With reference to the future life, the natural 
mind says "I have enough to do to look after the 
present, which has been given me to enjoy." The 
soul, looking beyond this present life, says "Striving 
for purity and fitness for heaven is no burden to 
me; but it enables me to bear the toil and to re- 



YOUR SPIRIT A DISTINCT ENTITY. 61 

joice in the trials of the present life." The natural 
mind says "I will deal honestly with all men, enjoy 
the present, and let the future life take care of 
itself." The soul replies "My spiritual life is my 
best life — a precious life that claims my special care 
and love." 

This combat clearly reveals a distinction in the 
nature of the objects upon which the affections of 
the natural mind are placed, and those in which the 
soul delights And we notice their opposite char- 
acter, and that they correspond to the character of 
the supplies by which the natural mind and the soul 
are nourished — natural knowledge for the natural 
mind, and supplies of spiritual perception and expe- 
rience for the soul. If there were no other evi- 
dences, these facts alone are sufficient to prove 
that your natural mind and spritual mind are dis- 
tinct and independent. 

These natural proofs cannot be attributed to im- 
agination. It is true, that to a certain extent we 
are indebted to the imaginative faculty of the hu- 
man mind for all of our discoveries in science. To 
this extent only does imagination enter into the 
consideration of the natural proofs of a future life. 
Imagination sometimes builds its faith on misinter- 
pretation of phenomena, and accepts as real that 



62 IMAGINATION. 

which is unnatural. But we have found natural 
proofs of a future life for both the soul and the 
body. 

It cannot truthfully be said that our religious ex- 
perience is derived from impressions of things that 
do not exist, but which are brought into unreal 
being by our own imagination. It is well known 
that imagination cannot possibly excite emotion or 
draw a tear from your eye, unless its pictures are 
imaginations of things that are real; that is, of 
beings or things that really exist — other imagina- 
tions have no power to develop emotion. With 
this question in view, if you will look over any 
emotional novel, you will discover that the writer 
of the novel was well acquainted with this psycho- 
logical fact. And the same is just as true concern- 
ing our enjoyment of spiritual communion with God 
and the heavenly world. 

That the soul is an entity distinct from the body 
may also be learned from the bible. Turning from 
the natural evidences to the scriptures, we read 
2 Cor. iv. 16 "Though our outward man perish, yet 
the inward man is renewed day by day." This 
language of the apostle Paul clearly teaches the du- 
ality of our existence. And we find that the apos- 
tle Paul understood well the distinction between 



YOUR SPIRIT A DISTINCT ENTITY. 63 

his natural mind and the mind of his spirit. Rom. 
vii. 19 he says "The good that I would, I do not: 
but the evil which I would not, that I do." 

And in the language that follows this statement, 
he recognizes the fact that to a limited extent your 
natural mind looking upward, may blend its activ- 
ity with the mind of your spirit; and that the mind 
of your spirit reaching downward, may to a limited 
extent enter the domain of the natural. And fur- 
thermore, from both natural evidences and the 
scriptures we learn that this is true not only du- 
ring natural life but also after death. 

It is in this way that spiritual living persons are 
enabled to receive impressions from departed 
friends, and to hold spiritual communion with them, 
across the river that separates earthly life from the 
life and home of departed spirits. 

And let us not forget that this is a pleasure 
which we and our friends in the spirit life can en- 
joy, only when our own souls are in a state like 
heaven; that is, entirely free from unkindness and 
impurity, and developed to perception of spiritual 
realities. By making it heavenly around us, we 
make it possible for our heavenly visitors to come 
and manifest their spiritual presence. 

The fact that your body and your spirit are dis- 



64 HUMAN SOULS MAY DIE. 

tinct and independent entities, is positive proof 
that your spirit may exist and live after the death 
of your body. 

It is true that a human spirit may die. It may 
die while the body is yet living; it may die when 
the body dies, or after the death of the body. But 
the death of your spirit is a catastrophe which need 
not occur at all. And in your own case, you know 
that your spirit is living and conscious, as long as 
you experience a desire for spirituality and the 
heavenly life. The entire absence of such desires 
and of spiritual perception, is a token of the death 
or inactivity of the soul, and reveals the guilt of a 
fatal neglect. This is the "Sin unto death" spoken 
of 1 John v. 16, from which there is no resurrec- 
tion, excepting through the exercise of divine 
recreating power, which God exercises in cases of 
spiritual restoration of human beings made in his 
own image. The Holy Spirit, speaking to such 
persons, issues a call Eph. v. 14, saying, "Awake 
thou that sleepest, and rise from the dead, and 
Christ shall give thee light;" thus revealing the 
grand fact of the possibility of a resurrection of 
dead souls in the present life. We are told that 
God gave not the Holy Spirit "by measure" to 
Jesus, who suffered for us on the cross; and that 



HOW THE LIFE OF THE SOUL IS MAINTAINED. 65 

"in him was life" — that life was "the light of men." 
Your natural body, if neglected would starve to 
death; and your spirit, if left without nourishment 
will perish. And these sad results occur accord- 
ing to both natural and etherial laws. 

All these lessons concerning the life and death 
of the soul, which have been obtained from nature, 
are likewise taught by the scriptures. Matt. x. 28 
Jesus says "Fear not them which kill the body, but 
are not able to kill the soul, but rather fear him 
which is able to destroy both soul and body." 
And Rom. vi. 23 Paul tells us that "The wages 
of sin is death; (that is, spiritual death) but the 
gift of God is eternal life (spiritual life) through 
Jesus Christ our Lord." 

And the teaching of Jesus is very plain as to how 
the life of your spirit is maintained, and how its 
stature and strength are increased. John vi. 27 
he says "Labor not for the meat that perisheth, 
but for the meat which endureth unto everlasting 
life." We notice that he does not say that the 
meat is to make something else endure, but that 
the meat itself endures; that is, the meat being 
spiritual, when it is appropriated by your spirit be- 
comes part of your spiritual body, and so endures 
forever. 



66 SPIRITUAL NOURISHMENT. 

The fact of an increase in spiritual capacities by 
the appropriation of spiritual perception and expe- 
rience, proves that your soul grows and increases in 
stature — grows through the influence of life of a 
higher character than that which supports your 
natural body. In all the kingdoms of nature, we 
notice this law, that transition from a lower order to 
a higher one, is accomplished through the activity 
of the life of the order next above it. 

A divinely implanted love of that which is spirit- 
ual nourishes your soul, controls your life and se- 
cures your entrance into the heavenly world, where 
no spiritual want can ever place your eternal life in 
peril again. John vi. 58 Jesus says "He that eat- 
eth of this bread (supplies that nourish the soul) 
shall live forever." 

Jesus is the bread of life to God's people at every 
period in the world's history — the mediator be- 
tween God and man in every age. John speaks of 
Christ as the "Lamb of God that taketh away the 
sin of the world." And Rev. xiii. 8 the apostle 
speaks of our Saviour as a "Lamb slain from the foun- 
dation of the world" — seen in Jewish types, in the 
previous promises, and intuitively by all those of 
whom Paul says (Rom. ii. 14) that they "Having 
not the law, are a law unto themselves." 



THE END OF OUR PROBATION. 67 



VL 



BOTH nature and the bible teach us that when 
our probation in the present life ends, it is 
over forever. 

The danger is past for all pure and godly souls 
who reach the heavenly world; whether they enter 
upon the enjoyment of the place of departed spirits 
for more perfect development, or being aire dy pre- 
pared, they enter at once the higher spheres of duty 
and happiness. Rev. xx. 6 we read "Blessed and 
holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: 
(the resurrection of spirits) on such the second 
death hath no power." The second death here re- 
ferred to, evidently is the destruction of the earth- 
ly bodies of all living, in the burning world; and 
also the death of wicked souls, who for a little 
while live after the death of their earthly bodies. 
And in the 14th verse we are told that "Death and 
hell were cast into the lake of fire." The greek 
word hades here translated "hell," is evidently the 
unseen world or place of departed spirits. 

The need of a place of departed spirits for the 
development of such persons as need development 



68 THE PLACE OF DEPARTED SPIRITS. 

and special care in the future, may be learned from 
the process required for our natural education. 
We know that the perfecting of the natural mind 
requires this same experience — first, the enjoyment 
of schools and colleges, and afterward the active 
duties and responsibilities of life. 

From the fact that the place of departed spirits 
is to be destroyed in the burning world, we learn 
that it is connected with the earth or the earth's 
atmosphere. 

The expression "place of departed spirits" which 
is frequently used, should be understood as meaning 
a state or condition of incapacity, as well as a par- 
ticular locality where souls are retained. And it is 
in one department of the place of departed spirits, 
that the souls of the lost who may continue to live 
after the death of their bodies, will suffer the final 
disolution of their spiritual organization. 

And while they remain there, they are separated 
from the spirits of "just men" which are being 
"made perfect." In the 16th chapter of Luke you 
find the parable of the rich man and Lazarus. And 
in the 26 th verse, the lost soul of the ungodly dead 
rich man testifies concerning his place and condi- 
tion. He tells us that he was separated from those 
who are in heaven. He says "Between us and you 



DEMONS. 69 

there is a great gulf fixed; so that they which 
would pass from hence to you cannot: neither can 
they pass to us, that would come from thence." 

And we also learn from the teaching of Jesus 
in the 8th chapter of Matthew, that the souls of 
the lost are sometimes visible, and that they wander 
from place to place and take possession of living 
wicked people and control them. 

,On one occasion our Saviour cast out of a lunatic 
a "Legion;" that is, a great number of such spirits; 
and according to their request sent them amongst 
a herd of swine — not into the swine as some people 
suppose, but among them; and the spirits so fright- 
ened the swine that the entire herd rushed down a 
''steep place" into the sea and perished. 

The wicked spirits then continued their efforts to 
take possession of other depraved human beings, 
with whom they could finish their own fast failing 
existence. The Saviour tells us that such a spirit 
is a devil. Eph. iv. 27 Paul tells us not to "Give 
place to the devil." And James iv. 1 you are told 
to "Resist the devil, and he will flee from you." 
That such dying souls are in that part of the place 
of departed spirits which appertains to the lost, and 
that it is not far away, we learn from Eph. ii. 2, 
where the apostle Paul tells us, that when such a 



10 DEMONS. 

spirit takes possession of a wicked person, it rules as 
a prince rules. He says that such a spirit is a 
"Prince of the power of the air;" and that often 
such spirits "work in the children of disobedience." 

In the scriptures the rebellious disposition of the 
ungodly world is sometimes personified, and called 
the devil and Satan. Job i. 1 we read that the 
Lord said to Satan "Whence comest thou ? Then 
Satan answered the Lord, and said, From going to 
and fro in the earth." The same also is seen in the 
account of the miracle wrought upon the woman 
that was "bowed down" so that she could not 
straighten herself up. Luke xiii. 16 Jesus speaks 
of her as one "Whom Satan hath bound, lo, these 
eighteen years." And in the record of the miracu- 
lous cure of the "impotent man," recorded in the 
5th chapter of John, we read that Jesus said to him 
"Sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto thee." 
From these two passages we learn that sin was the 
Satan that bound the crooked form of the woman 
upon whom he had wrought the miracle. ( 

/Mark v. 7 we are told that a devil addressed our 
Saviour as "Jesus thou son of the most high God." 
This shows that a demon retains former human in- 
telligence, knows the truth and sometimes speaks it. 
And these living spirits practice the same kind of 



THE DEVIL. 71 

deception in our day. Transforming themselves 
into angels "of light," they sometimes come to 
christians when they are not expecting such temp- 
tation, and touch their experience pretending to be 
the Holy Spirit, and so teach them lies that lead 
them astray. 

Wisdom also is sometimes personified. Prov. i. 
20 we are told that "Wisdom crieth without; she 
uttereth her voice in the streets." 

Owing to a misunderstanding of such passages, the 
belief is quite common that the bible teaches the 
existence of one huge personal devil or being, who 
exists somewhere in the universe, and successfully 
opposes God and his purposes concerning mankind. 
"/The bible does not teach the existence of one 
great devil; but it teaches the existence of legions 
of devils. These devils are demons; that is, they 
are the disembodied spirits of certain wicked peo- 
ple — spirits who are dying or wasting away, and 
whose spiritual organizations will finally perish. 
As in their earthly life some of them were princes 
and others were less distinguished, so in their depra- 
ved and malicious spirit existence as they are pass- 
ing _ a way to the darkness of eternal death, they 
occupy the same positions among their evil associ- 
ates that they did before the death of their bodies. 



72 THE TEMPTATION OF JESUS. 

Rev. xvi. 14 we read of "Spirits of demons work- 
ing miracles." As demons have no spirits, we may- 
omit the preposition "of," and the meaning of this 
obscure passage is perfectly plain. It tells us that 
spirit demons work miracles; that is, demons are 
the spirits of depraved dead persons, yet alive and 
still exercising their diabolical power amongst man- 
kind. 

In the temptation of Christ in the wilderness, the 
tempter may have been the lost spirit of Herod, the 
ungodly king who tried to kill Jesus when he was 
an infant. Understanding well the political condi- 
tion of the world and the controling power of am- 
bition, he endeavored to control and destroy Christ 
by inducing him to choose the honor of being the 
deliverer of the Jews and their king who would 
lead them to universal empire; instead of redeem- 
ing the world through suffering and death accord- 
ing to the scriptures. Herod was a notoriously 
wicked monarch. Besides all his other diabolical 
deeds, he murdered Marianna and her two sons; for 
which he afterward suffered terrible remorse. He 
was so wicked that Augustus said he "Would 
rather be Herod's swine than his son." Matt. ii. 16 
we are. told that he "Sent forth and slew ail the 
children that were in Bethlehem and in all the 



DEMONS. 73 

coasts thereof;" and he died in less than a year 
after that diabolical deed. 

Matt. iv. 10-11 we are told that Jesus said to 
him "Get thee hence, Satan," and that "then the 
devil leaveth him, and behold angels came and min- 
istered unto him; that is, angelic ministering spir- 
its who are the companions of all godly persons, 
were present to encourage him, and to rejoice with 
him in his triumph over the prince demon. And 
Heb. iv. 15 we read that Jesus "Was in all points 
tempted like as we, yet without sin." < 

Matt. xvi. 23 we read that Jesus said to Peter 
"Get thee hence Satan." If the bible meaning of 
the name Satan is one great being, it is logically 
necessary to understand this passage as meaning 
that Peter was that being. But such is not the 
teaching of Jesus. He meant that at that time 
Peter was under the influence of a demon. 

This agrees perfectly with the teaching of the 
scriptures concerning Judas. John vi. 70 Jesus 
says "Have I not chosen you twelve, and one of 
you is a devil." He certainly does not mean that 
Judas was the personal devil of the common belief, 
but he means that Judas was possessed of a demon. 
This is plain from John xiii. 27 where we are told 
that after Jesus had given the sop to Judas, Satan 



^4 FALLEN ANGELS. 

entered into him." His body did not become the 
devil; but a devil or demon entered into him, and 
controlled his will and his actions. 

Connected with this subject there if another error 
which is generally received. It is commonly be- 
lieved that angels or spirits may fall from the secu- 
rity, happiness and purity of heaven. 

^This uncomfortable belief is founded entirely 
upon 2 Peter ii. 4 where we are told that "God 
spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them 
down to hell. ,, The two similar passages, one of 
which is found in the 6th verse of Jude, and the 
other in the later apocryphal book of Enoch, evi- 
dently are quotations from this language of the 
apostle Peter. 

By carefully reading the epistle of Jude, it will 
be seen that the "angels" or messengers spoken of 
are Moses and Aaron; and that the "habitation" 
which they ceased to seek for was Canaan. They 
left the ways of their "first" obedience and failed to 
reach the land of promise. 

Their bodies died; and angels and devils disputed 
over the destiny of the earthly remains of these 
distinguished but imperfect servants of God. 
Their liberated souls continued to live and enjoy 
the presence of God in heaven, but their bodies 



LAWS OF NATURAL VISION CONTROLLED. 15 

were bound "in chains under darkness;" that is, 
natural death. And Jude exhorts proud rebels to 
take warning from the fact that even the great mes- 
sengers sent by God himself to lead the children of 
Israel, could not escape this consequence of their 
own rebellious ways; and tells them that death will 
also overtake them with all their pride. And he 
exhorted his brethren to preach to them the "faith 
which was once delivered to the saints," that they 
might find salvation through the Son God by whom 
only they could secure the eternal life of their souls. 
Heaven itself gives assurance of the life, security 
and happiness of those who are there. 

It may be said that if there is a spiritual exist- 
ence after death, and if the relation between earthly 
life and the spirit life is so intimate, we should 
sometimes have tokens of the fact that our godly 
departed friends are still living. This certainly is 
a just conclusion. And that such manifestations 
do occur, is established by the testimony of persons 
whose word on any other snbject would not be 
doubted; and by men and women who occupy po- 
sitions of authority not only in society but in our 
churches. John Wesley says that he himself was 
permitted to enjoy the experience of such tokens. 
In his journal he wrote as follows: "OnFridav Julv 



*I6 THE EVIDENCES NOT IMAGINARY. 

3rd, I was sitting at dinner, when I heard some one 
coming along the passage. I looked around, and 
saw my aunt Margaret Scott of Newcastle standing 
behind me. On Saturday I had a letter informing 
me that she died that day." And Dr. Adam Clarke 
also, in his commentary says "I believe that spirits 
may have intercourse with this world and become 
visible to mortals. Surely we cannot believe that 
John Wesley and Dr. Adam Clarke were demented 
when they wrote these things. Indeed there are 
many spiritual people in our own day, who in their 
happy experience enjoy seasons of communion with 
heavenly spirits. 

When we approach the narrow stream that sepa- 
rates the earthly life from the heavenly, it is rea- 
sonable that we should feel the land breezes of the 
hereafter, as we feel the land breezes of the ocean 
although the verdure clad hills may be too far away 
to be seen. 

Let us not even for a moment feel that our faith 
in a future existence rests upon an imaginary foun- 
dation. In this one discourse, we have found four 
positive proofs of its reality. In the unchangeable 
character of the laws of the natural universe — in 
the fact that your body and spirit are distinct and 
independent entities — in the fact that your percep- 



EVIDENCES WITHIN REACH OF ALL. 77 

tion and enjoyment of spiritual life are enlarged 
through spiritual nutrition — and in the perfect 
agreement between the bible and nature in all of 
their teaching with reference to the subject. 

And we may also add, that evidences of the real- 
ity of our future life, are of such a character that 
they are within reach of all mankind. This is 
clearly proven by the universality of the belief in 
a future existence, which is found in all nations — 
barbarous and civilized, ancient and modern; ex- 
cepting a few of the most depraved tribes of unde- 
veloped human beings, who consequently have not 
the faculty of spiritual perception. 



78 AN IMrKOPER USE OF 1HE BIBLE. 



VII 



THERE are many christian people who believe 
in the future life, but they are not fully sat- 
isfied as to its reality. They believe, but they are 
wishing for more convincing proofs. It is to help 
such persons that these natural evidences are of- 
fered. We have seen that the principal purpose for 
which the worjd exists, is to bring into being multi- 
tudes of human spirits to inhabit and enjoy heaven. 
We have found that after death the bodies of all 
mankind will be recreated and live again; and 
that this occurs according to the laws of nature. 
From the phenomena of our lives we have learned 
that our souls really exist, and that they live as dis- 
tinct and independent entities; and that beyond 
death the continued life of every hnman soul is pos- 
sible but not obigatory: and that although souls 
may be lost during earthly life, they may be recre- 
ated through the divine power of Christ. And we 
have seen that the teaching of nature corresponds 
with the teaching of the bible concerning all the 
grand facts which are connected with human exist- 
ence on earth and in the future life. 



THE BRIDGE. 79 

As we carefully conducted you over this new 
field of thought, we endeavored to call your atten- 
tion to every thing that is intimately connected with 
it; in order that you might feel more at home, en- 
joy with confidence the views, and trust more fully 
the proofs presented. 

It may be said that if this is the correct mode of 
interpreting the scriptures, it would be seen and 
proclaimed by other ministers of the gospel. We 
reply, that the bible and the laws and phenomena 
of nature tell us that it certainly is the correct mode 
of interpretation; and it would be enjoyed by all 
churches, if it was not obscured and opposed by 
theological and denominational creeds; for it is 
quite common to find the bible used to establish 
creeds, rather than to study it only for the purpose 
of ascertaining its import, and the enjoyment of 
the light it reveals. 

And this is the reason why so much of this dis- 
course on the positive proofs of a future life is of a 
negative character — endeavoring to remove obstruc- 
tions, in order that both the light of the bible and 
the light of nature may be seen. 

The course we have pursued, in its character and 
in its purpose, is entirely different from the course 
pursued by infidels and atheists. They find that 



80 THE BRIDGE. 

the natural and scriptural bridge over the stream 
that separates the earthly from the heavenly life, 
has been rendered aparently dangerous to the faith 
and comfort of pilgrims crossing; and that in order 
to meet their extravagant views, religious creeds 
have pulled aside planks and spiked them fast — 
leaving what seem to be holes which alarm the pas- 
sing traveler. And assuming that the bridge is a 
dangerous one, unkindly they endeavor to kick it 
from under our feet. But the bridge is sound and 
safe; and we have endeavored to repair the secta- 
rian openings, and to make comfortable for all be- 
lievers, their passage over the river that separates 
this world from the world which is to come. 

And we sincerely hope that every one who 
prayerfully studies the proofs of a future life, as 
they are presented in this discourse, may receive 
light from both God's word and his works; and re- 
alize that fullness of assurance which alone can sat- 
isfy the longing of the human heart 



HEAVEN IS NBAB. 81 



VIII. 



WE must not close this discourse without a few- 
words, also, with reference to the mode of 
that life which we shall live in the world of spirits. 
Heaven is not far away from those who have spir- 
itual experience. And even far off regions are near; 
for in the heavenly life it will require no more time 
to travel a million of miles, than it does now for 
our thoughts to cross the ocean, or for an electric 
signal to flash around the world — such is the rapid- 
ity of many of the ethereal movements. And with 
reference to this, the scriptures agree with the 
teaching of nature. In 1 Corinthians, fifteenth 
chapter, the apostle Paul, speaking of the wonderful 
rapidity of spiritual changes and movements, des- 
cribes them as occurring in "A moment in the 
twinkling of an eye." 

We may gain much information concerning the 
nature of spirit life, from the study of the resur- 
rection of the spirit and body of Jesus. Rev. i. 5 
we are told that Jesus is "The first begotten of the 
dead;" that is, the first begotten to eternal life un- 
der the christian dispensation. The resurrection of 



82 NATURAL LAWS CONTROLLED. 

the natural body of Jesus was a miracle. God did 
not violate natural laws, but hastened the operation 
of those that govern resurrection. That this is pos- 
sible, is seen in the fact that a gardener hastens 
the laws of vegetation, and succeeds in bringing 
for our use lettuce and radishes long before their 
natural season. In the present life perhaps we may 
not know how the resurrection of Jesus was ac- 
complished, for with reference to many things we 
"see through a glass darkly." Human faculties are 
limited — limited as to the extent of their powers. 
There are sounds which we cannot hear, light that 
we cannot see, and there are natural and ethereal 
laws that our finite minds cannot jf ully comprehend. 
Some persons can hear better than others, and 
some persons can see things which are invisible to 
others. And so it is with regard to our spiritual 
capacities. Some persons can realize God's exist- 
ence only as a constructing power; but there are 
others who through a development of their powers 
of spiritual discernment recognize his personality, 
and others who recognize his presence as a loving 
Father. 

It is no argument against the positive character 
of these proofs, for scoffers at the reality of 
spiritual existence to say that they cannot see these 



JESUS AFTER HIS RESURRECTION. 83 

things. They should not expect to see them. They 
deny the existence of their own souls, and conse- 
quently must be without spiritual education or ex- 
perience, and enjoy only to a limited extent the 
faculty of spiritual perception. 

Rom. iv. 25 we are told that Jesus was "Raised 
again for our justification ;" that is, for the justifi- 
cation of our faith in him as our Saviour, and for 
the justification of our faith in the future life, be- 
cause we learn so many things regarding that life, 
from the phenomena connected with his appearances 
after his resurrection — facts which enable us to un- 
derstand the nature of our own future existence 
and to believe in its reality. 

In the history of the risen Lord, we find that on 
certain occasions he was not recognized by his most 
intimate friends; and, that afterwards they recog- 
nized him. He passed through doors that were 
locked and appeared suddenly in the midst of his 
disciples. He ascended and a cloud received him 
out of their sight. And after his ascension he was 
seen by Stephen and by Paul — men whose vision 
for a moment was exalted that they might enjoy 
the spiritual view. 

That such an increase of vision is within the lim- 
its of natural law we learn from Num. xxii. 23-31, 



84 SPIRITUAL DISTANCE. 

where we are told, that the dumb animal on which 
Balaam was riding saw an "Angel of the Lord 
standing in the way," and that afterward "the Lord 
opened the eyes of Balaam, and he saw the angel." 

In the spirit life our distance from each other 
will not be measured by our positions in space, but 
by our agreement in our spiritual tastes and pur- 
poses. In all these things they who dwell in heav- 
en are one to such an extent that perfect peace and 
joy prevails. And no doubt this is one great rea- 
son why Jesus prayed so earnestly for his people 
that "They may be one" — a prayer which is record- 
ed John xvii. 11. And it is because humility is es- 
sential to such unity and happiness, that Matt, xviii. 
3 he says "Except ye be converted, and become 
as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom 
of heaven" — heaven, where our spiritual work will 
never weary us, and where differences will never 
trouble us. 

Perhaps the most useful lesson we have learned 
from our investigation is, that without nourishment 
our spirits will perish. Many souls do die. There 
are men and women concerning whom we may 
truthfully say that they are living natural bodies 
only. 

Whether we are young, middle aged or old, we 



OUR HEAVENLY SHEPHERD. 85 

all need a spiritual shepherd's care — one who will 
give us "our daily bread." The heavenly Shepherd 
is here. He cares for all of his fold, and supplies 
our spiritual nature with heavenly manna — angels' 
food — supplies of spiritual instruction, perception 
and experience. John vi. 63 Jesus says "The words 
that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are 
life." 

The life, teaching, example, death, resurrection 
and ascension of Christ explain the mysteries of your 
life, your death and your resurrection. And thus 
Jesus is with us and will be with us, and be our 
support and our guide, when we shall be called 
to pass through the "valley and shadow of death. 
Those who are living spiritual lives, may indeed 
rejoice that they are able to say in the words of the 
familiar lines — 

There is no such thing as death; 

Tis but the blossom spray, 
Dropping before the coming fruit 

That seeks the summer's ray. 
Tis but the bud displaced 

Before the perfect flower. 
Tis only faith exchanged for sight, 
And weariness for power. 

It is evident that your earthly body is repre- 
sented in the organization of your spirit; and also, 



86 THE LANGUAGE OP SPIRITS. 

that you will possess and use all of your present 
senses, but only as they are now possessed and used 
by your spirit — in enjoyment and work of spirit- 
ual character. 

During earthly life, the bodies and minds of all 
human beings are modified and bear the impress of 
their own sexual character. But in heaven these 
distinctions are unknown, except in the happy rec- 
ollection of earth's most sacred relations. 

The fact that you will retain your identity and 
individual peculiarities is not incredible, if we re- 
member that every few years during your present 
iife, the matter of which your body is composed all 
*s exchanged for other earthly materials, and yet 
you remain the same person. 

As now with your natural hand you grasp an ob- 
ject, or with your mind you grasp a thought, so 
your spirit will hold the realities of spirit life; and 
enjoy them in the companionship of those you love. 
We will converse with our friends, unencum- 
bered by earthly organs of speech — using our own 
language, by impression in spiritual ways. 

Professor Lodge, president of the mathematical 
section of the British Association for the advance- 
ment of science, says he is fully convinced that 
even in the present life, the mind of one person 



SPIRITS IN HEAVEN EXEMPT FROM DANGER. 87 

can speak to the mind of another by other means 
than those usually recognized ; in other words, that 
mind reading is an established fact. 

In heaven, neither electricity or heat will have 
power to harm us. In the third chapter of Dan- 
iel, we are told that Shedrach Meshach, Abed-nego 
and an angel were seen walking in the fiery furnace. 
The bodies of the three Hebrew children which 
were seen in the furnace, evidently were their spir- 
itual bodies. Their earthly bodies were consumed; 
and the bodies seen were of the same nature as the 
body of the angel that was present with them. 
This is a reasonable view of the miracle, because 
in the scriptures there are records of other cases in 
which angels appeared as natural men, and exe- 
cuted their work as naturally as these three He- 
brew children did after their victory over the 
flames, when they were elevated to important po- 
sitions in the administration of the government. 

Nicola Tesla, the distinguished scientist, by a 
wonderful experiment which he recently made, has 
proved that a deadly current of electricity, when 
it is increased to thirty or forty thousand volts 
with three to five thousand interruptions per sec- 
ond, is changed in its character and becomes harm- 
less to the human body. He himself, on several 



88 THE GATES AJAR. 

occasions received such a current of electricity, 
without experiencing any uncomfortable sensations. 

In the spirit life, age is not recognized and decay 
is unknown; but pacing days and hours are pre- 
cious because of the opportunities for work and en- 
joyment that they bring. 

When the bodies of our friends are dying, their 
spirits have reason to wonder at our apparent spir- 
itual indifference and want of faith and understand- 
ing, as we remain at a distance from them, while 
they are trying to draw us nearer to the bright 
cloud which they are entering that we may see the 
spiritual scenes that are breaking upon their view. 
But they loose sight of our imperfections, and we 
may rest assured that when they enter the heav- 
enly world they will leave the "gates ajar," and 
place a "light in the window" as a token of love 
and solicitude for our welfare — frequently coming 
near us to comfort us, and to hold communion with 
us — indicating their presence by impressions which 
they make upon our spiritual nature. And we 
should remember that this is possible only when 
our own souls are in a state like heaven — developed, 
free from unkindness and free from impurity. 

Heb. i. 14 we read of the heavenly "Ministering 
spirits sent forth to minister for them who shall be 



TESTIMONY FROM CHRISTIAN PULPITS. 89 

heirs of salvation" — spirits who endeavor to raise 
our affections above transitory things, that they 
may be placed upon things in heaven. 

Many facts relating to heaven, may be learned 
from the sermons of talented christian ministers. 

Scepticism has its men of talent — Hegel, Strauss, 
Bauer, Renan, Weisse and Shenkel; but it does not 
include in its ranks the most brilliant minds nor 
the highest scientific authorities. The roll call of 
Christianity reveals the names of the great astrono- 
mers Kepler, Copernicus and Newton — the geolo- 
gists Agassiz and Lyell; and statesmen, explorers, 
botanists, Music composers and poets are represent- 
ed by Gladstone, Washington, Columbus, Stanley, 
Linnaeus, Gray, Hay den, Mendelssohn, Mozart, Mil- 
ton and Longfellow. And the list of religious 
teachers, even in our own country, includes Tal- 
mage, Shipman, Hamilton, Crosby, Inglis, Hall and 
Simpson. And from the pulpits that are filled by 
these preachers, who are men of the highest culture, 
honesty and logical training, you may learn many 
things about the future life. They agree in their 
teaching. 

Heaven is not so far away as we may think. It 
lies all about us; and when we go hence we shall 
not go far. Christians may rejoice in the assurance 



90 THE VEIL TAKEN AWAY. 

that as they go along life's dusty highway and 
climb its hills, they are not alone — unseen friends 
are in our company, lending us strength and help- 
ing our footsteps as we move towards heaven. 

The partition between this world and heaven is 
far thinner than we think. If our view was not 
obscured by noise and smoke of earth's machinery, 
perhaps we might see the heavenly world. Some- 
times, to the dying, that partition is so thin that 
they are able to see and hear through it. 

The scriptures tell us that the veil has been 
taken away. An angel rescued Peter from prison. 
In Gethsemane an angel appeared to strengthen 
Jesus, and an angel rolled the stone from the door 
of his sepulchre. 

To those who are living spiritual lives, the invis- 
l ble is not dark but glorious. Bishop Simpson says, 
that in his experience, sometimes the veil becomes 
so thin that he is conscious of the presence of spirit- 
ual forms. 

Your dear ones that have been taken away — your 
beloved child, your godly father, your christian 
mother, your faithful wife — if they have gone on 
before you, are not far away — only beyond the 
line of the invisible. There is music around us, al- 
though we may not hear it. There are forms 



HEAVEN. 91 

about us, though in the busy scenes of life we rec- 
ognize them not. 1 Cor. xiii. 12 Paul says "For 
now we see through a glass darkly; but then face 
to face; that is, when we shall go to be forever 
"present with the Lord." 

The veil of the future will soon be lifted for all 
the "pure in heart" and the invisible will appear. 
We shall behold the reality and beauty of the heav- 
enly land, where at last we may enter into that per- 
fect rest which is unknown in this lower world. 
How often we ask the questions and hear the an- 
swers which are expressed in the familiar poetical 
lines — 

Tell me thou mighty deep 

Whose billows round me play, 

Know'st thou some favored spot, 

Some island far away, 

Where weary man may find 

The bliss for which he sighs — 

Where sorrows never come 

And pleasure never dies? 

The loud waves ceased their turbid flow, 

And sighed the plaintive, no I 

Tell me my secret soul, 
Oh! tell me hope and faith, 
Is there no resting place 
From sorrow, sin and death? 



92 HEAVJEN. 

Is there no happy spot 
Where grief may find a balm 
And weariness a rest? 
Faith, hope and love, 
Best boons to mortals given, 
Waved their bright wings, 
And answered, yes, in heaven. 

We should esteem it as our highest privilege and 
duty to cultivate a love for that which is pure and 
spiritual; that we may have no fear of the future, 
but feel as Paul did when he wrote those words of 
confidence, 2 Cor. v. 8 — "Willing rather to be ab- 
sent from the body and present with the Lord." 
And thus rejoicing, we may journey onward and 
upward toward the heavenly mansions. And by 
and by our faith and hope will be lost in the reali- 
ties of spiritual life; and all the trials of this world 
will be forgotten in the perfect happiness of out 
home in heaven. 



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